Time Still Turns the Pages
A Hong Kong teacher confronting an at-risk student is forced to revisit the childhood wounds that shaped his own silence.
Overview
A schoolteacher confronts the shadows of her past while trying to save a troubled student.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Extreme
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- melancholic
- heavy-hearted
- intimate
- reflective viewing
- social issue film night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised Nick Cheuk’s emotionally powerful, intricately structured debut for its sensitive treatment of childhood abuse, academic pressure, and trauma within Hong Kong’s education and family systems.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Mr. Cheng’s present as a teacher is activated by troubling information about an at-risk student and intertwined with painful memories of his own childhood.
The film examines Hong Kong’s ailing education system, academic pressure, and the limitations of schooling in addressing vulnerable students’ needs.
The teacher’s story and the young boy’s situation unfold through a complex structure that connects their experiences of domestic and societal trauma.
Critics specifically highlighted the film’s portrayal of emotionally constricted households and the oppressive environments surrounding childhood abuse and academic pressure.
Films like Time Still Turns the Pages, and why
Aftersun
intergenerational trauma, emotionally restrained drama, and a painful confrontation with childhood abuse
The Quiet Girl
sensitive exploration of family dysfunction, suppressed memory, and childhood emotional harm
Shoplifters
socially conscious drama centered on vulnerable young people and institutional pressures
The Broken Circle Breakdown
melancholic psychological drama about buried trauma and the lasting effects of family violence
Movie Details
- Director
- Nick Cheuk Yik-Him
- Release Date
- 2023-11-16
- Runtime
- 95 min
- Rating
- 7.9 / 10 (67)
Cast
- Lo Chun-Yip
- Ronald Cheng Chung-Kei
- Sean Wong Tsz-Lok
- Hanna Chan
- Rosa Maria Velasco
- Curtis Ho Pak Lim
- Yukki Tai
- Nancy Kwai
- Henick Chou
- Joey Leung Cho-Yiu
Common questions
- What is Time Still Turns the Pages about?
- A Hong Kong teacher confronting an at-risk student is forced to revisit the childhood wounds that shaped his own silence.
- What is Time Still Turns the Pages like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Time Still Turns the Pages as measured, its intensity as extreme and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Time Still Turns the Pages violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Time Still Turns the Pages as mild.
- What did critics think of Time Still Turns the Pages?
- Critics broadly praised Nick Cheuk’s emotionally powerful, intricately structured debut for its sensitive treatment of childhood abuse, academic pressure, and trauma within Hong Kong’s education and family systems.
- Which films are like Time Still Turns the Pages?
- Films with a similar feel include Aftersun, The Quiet Girl, Shoplifters, and The Broken Circle Breakdown.
- How long is Time Still Turns the Pages?
- Time Still Turns the Pages runs 95 minutes.
